


Atonement

by chickapea



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Coming of Age, Dating, Draco Malfoy is Bad at Feelings, Dysfunctional Family, Dysfunctional Relationships, Eventual Romance, F/M, Family, Good Draco Malfoy, Post-War, Redeemed Draco Malfoy, Redemption, Romance, Self-Doubt, Self-Hatred
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-03
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:40:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25685947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chickapea/pseuds/chickapea
Summary: WORK IN PROGRESS!Draco's true post-war coming of age story, where he learns to integrate back into wizarding society with all its trials and tribulations.Diving into what it's like to be one of the most hated wizards in the community and the finicky dating scene for those cast aside. Mending relationships outside and within his family, as well as navigating the world through a new lens.
Relationships: Astoria Greengrass & Draco Malfoy, Astoria Greengrass/Draco Malfoy
Comments: 1
Kudos: 18





	Atonement

C.1 Curious Meeting

“Darling, will you join me?”

Draco’s attention was pulled from the dancing picture embellishing the centre page of the Daily Prophet, his gray eyes darting over the fine edges of the paper. Narcissa stood eloquently in the middle of the den area, hands behind her back, and her brow twitching upwards for an answer. He creased the paper slightly in the middle to see her better, the top half of the paper folding over gently.

“Where are you off to?” He raised a brow in her direction. It wasn’t every day him or his family made a venture to the outside world, in fact it was hardly ever, Draco could barely recall the last time he did a shop. It had been two years since the war ended, but despite the fact that their family fled the battle, people were still livid at even the mention of their family name. 

He twinged at the memories, he thought to himself that he couldn’t blame the lot of them. They’d just have to adjust to life on the outside now. 

“I’m visiting my friend Kyrene Greengrass. You should recall her daughter, Daphne, she was in the same year as you.” 

Draco folded the paper down the middle and laid it on the armrest, his eyes quickly darting to his father who sat opposite of him, their eyes met briefly, and Lucius returned to his own scripts. 

He knew what they were doing, or maybe this was just a work of his mother’s doing, but she failed to hide her intentions from him. He’d accompanied her to a few select locations under the guise of being some sort of guard to her, but a simple floo to the Greengrass' grounds didn’t warrant his presence. Draco knew his parents were still rather traditional people – and to have him wed off to a pureblood witch would allow them to die happy, and it seemed now his mother couldn’t contain herself from interjecting.

“I do remember.” He nodded to her words, flashbacks of Hogwarts flooding his vision. Daphne was a close friend of Pansy, and Pansy… He inwardly shuddered. A fleeting school aged romance made him cringe, but the memories of that flock of girls when they got together made him grateful he locked himself away in his family’s home. 

“Ah.” Narcissa smiled and beckoned him toward the fireplace, barely used in this new home, eagerly anticipating their entrance. “Maybe you two could catch up while I catch up with her mother.”

“It may prove advantageous for you to converse with peers your age.” Lucius piped up, not bothering to tear his own gray eyes from his pages, just offering up his opinion on the matter. 

Were they right? Draco debated himself in his head – did he need friends again? Did he really ever have friends? In the heat of the moment sure, he had his crew, but being able to step away from his old mindset he can now see it was a circle jerk of power moves to climb to the top, surround yourself with powerful people to remain in the loop. After the war ended they went their separate ways, not even a letter or a hello in the street. Nobody meant anything of note to others, he was sure of it. 

His mother’s soft brown eyes wavered as he pondered the idea. To please her, he would. 

Upon arriving at the Greengrass estate, Draco was reminded of the things they let go after the war. The luxurious mansion he grew up in was abandoned by his mother’s request, too many memories, it kept them up at night. Sometimes Draco felt as if he could still hear cries from the cellar. 

Draco dipped his hands into his pockets and peered around the large foyer, it seemed cozier than Malfoy Manor, tapestries and art decorated the walls, colours bounced out and tickled his eyes. He wasn’t sure why but they kept their space relatively minimalistic, they could afford the best art there was to buy from around the world, but he supposed that’s how they kept the money plentiful, by not spending so frivolously. 

Narcissa stepped forward and calmly greeted the nothingness to announce their arrival, Draco remained behind her with his hands laying limp in his trouser pockets, still eyeing the many wall fixtures that screamed for attention. He didn’t care for making friends with his old school buddies, but this art was rather interesting, so he found a silver lining in his attendance. 

A servant led them to a large den area, a crackling fire warmed and lit the area up, more intricate rugs on the floors and imported goods framed the walls. 

“Narcissa.” A woman called from the chaise before the fire, a smile donning her face as the two approached, and she carelessly tossed her paper to the side. “It’s been ages.” 

“It has.” Narcissa agreed warmly, and as the woman stood, they both opened their arms for a wide hug. Draco didn’t imagine his mother having real friends, maybe female friends to gossip with, gossip and parade their wealth around aimlessly like he’d witnessed for most of his life. Nevertheless, he was happy his mother could get some much-needed socialising in, Lucius and himself weren’t the best talkers. 

“And Draco!” The woman peered to him with a devilish smirk, Narcissa moving out of the way and presenting him to her, as if he were a toddler that had done something remarkable. He could already feel his stomach twisting with displeasure. “It’s so good to see you.” 

He put on a show, which was a curt smile in her direction. “You as well, Kyrene.” 

“Everything has been well for you?” Kyrene led them toward the couches that all faced the fireplaces, another woman sat silently, a book balancing on her thigh and a mug clutched between fingers. He recognized her immediately. Attempting to ignore her, he found a seat on the opposite side of his mother from her. 

“As well as it can be.” He spoke, playing on what she wanted to hear. It seemed all the purebloods held onto this silly idea that they were victims after the war – either from being ostracized within the wizarding community, losing loved ones in the battle, hint, they were on the less favourable side, which made Draco scoff nearly every time he heard that excuse as to why someone was doing poorly. He wasn’t one to agree, and it seemed he was alone in these held beliefs. 

Kyrene rolled her eyes. “Yes, what times we live in right now.” 

She took a seat beside Daphne, she remained silent but dog-eared her book knowing all too well she’d be pulled into this conversation. Draco wondered idly if she’d been pulled into this just as he had. “Surely you must remember Daphne, my eldest.” She lightly slapped Daphne’s shoulder to pull her from her hazy trance of staring off at the wall. “She too didn’t go back to complete her N.E.W.T.S.” 

Daphne panned her eyes to meet Draco’s, and he immediately senses the unease and urgency in their meeting. The distaste in her features only screamed how much she didn’t want to be there. “Draco.” She greeted him politely, in such a way that wouldn’t upset their mothers. Narcissa and Kyrene watched expectedly. 

“Daphne.” He nodded in her direction. He can’t imagine much has changed with her but who the hell was he to speak? Out of everyone in his crew he supposed he seemed the least likely out of them all to have a complete warp in ideals, and he hid it well, for his parents sake he wasn’t about to announce it to the entire pureblood community. “How are you fairing?” 

She gave a half-assed shrug. “Decently I suppose, what with all the pureblood hate we’ve had to deal with in the community.”

Draco resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Really, what had she been facing that was so stressful, maybe some side glances in the streets, a murmur under their breath? 

Doesn’t seem like she’s changed, he thought idly to himself as their mothers began to chat, still delusional to believe the world owed her something simply for being born. He’d learned blood purity was nothing to be prideful over – they didn’t do anything to earn it, it simply existed within them. He watched as she returned to her book, and thought maybe he was the delusional one for going against the grain. 

Snow raged out the window. Christmas was rapidly approaching but it was hardly something he looked forward to anymore. As Kyrene and Narcissa chatted aimlessly Draco leaned against the back of the couch and gazed out the window silently, their voices draining away to the crisp sounds if the fire before him. 

“Mother.” A voice echoed against the walls, an unfamiliar voice Draco noted, as he pulled away from his trance to stare into the dark hallway. A figure emerged from the darkness, another woman, similar in age and appearance to Daphne. “Oh.” She spotted the company and stopped on the edge of the rug. “My bad, I didn’t know we were hosting.” 

“No worries at all.” Kyrene cocked her head toward the woman. “My old friend Narcissa has come to pay your mother a visit, isn’t that nice.”

The woman smiled in their direction. 

“This is my youngest daughter, Astoria.” Kyrene explained proudly, beckoning her over, closer to the couches to show her off. “She’s on Christmas break from Hogwarts, she’ll be graduating this year.”

“Oh how lovely.” Narcissa smiled warmly and gave Draco a slight nudge in the ribs with her elbow to perk him up. “Do you remember my son? He’s your sisters age.”

“I do.” She smiled and gave a half nod in his direction. “Draco Malfoy.” 

He returned the half nod but his mother interjected first. “I urged him to return to school to finish his exams, but I suppose it’s not needed if there’s no need to work.” 

“Originally Astoria had her heart set on working for the Department of Magical Beasts, but with her … condition.. her father and I believe working in administration for the Wizengamot may be better suited for her. That is, if she decides to work, she doesn’t need to of course.” 

Draco watched Astoria cross her arms over her chest with a sigh at her mother’s words. He wondered what condition would keep her from working with creatures, an allergy maybe? 

“Or perhaps a job as a muggle liason officer.” She noted, eyes watching her mother for a reaction. 

This piqued his interest, Draco eyed them both, waiting for a snide remark and a storm off from one or the other. Was Astoria serious with her remark or did she simply want to get a rise from her mother? 

Daphne’s brows furrowed with a roll of her eyes and Kyrene sharply inhaled. “Please don’t mind her, after the war ended she decided to conform to the notions pushed on her instead of those she was raised with.” 

He could feel the tension, especially from his mother, who knew she could relate to the situation. Draco’s change in ideals came as a shock to her, and although she didn’t agree with them she resisted the urge to call him out on it. Narcissa shifted in her seat. 

Draco watched Astoria intently with a newfound interest in her – it wasn’t everyday he met somebody that made the drastic change in ideals. 

“Well it was nice meeting you, Narcissa, and nice to see you again Draco.” Astoria began. “I have a few texts to catch up on so I must be off.” 

Draco wished so badly he could have told her she wasn’t alone in this pureblood community to have gained some semblance of empathy for others. He knew he found it comforting that he wasn’t alone, he wanted her to feel the same. 

Returning home, Draco wiped his hands on his black trousers as his mother appeared in the fireplace. “Thank you for joining me, Draco.”

“Of course.” He fixed the collar of his shirt. “I suppose it was nice to get out of the house.”

“It was.” She agreed, her fingers tugging on each other in a habit he’d only recently noticed. His parents had grown into the paranoid type, and his mother specifically developed a few habits to put herself at ease. “Daphne seems like a nice girl.” 

They walked through the empty den area together, their shoes making a crisp sound against the fresh hardwood beneath them. Normally she would excuse herself upstairs, but she followed him toward the kitchen area. 

“Wouldn’t you agree?” She pressed. 

Draco fought back an eye roll. “She hardly spoke ten words.” He commented, approaching the sink to pour himself some cold water. He watched curiously as her expression shifted. “Astoria at least had an ounce of personality.” 

Narcissa tapped her painted nails against the marble counter in a frantic beat. “Is that so?” Draco hummed as a response as his lips met the glass. “I thought she was a bit… odd.”

He kept taking a long sip so he didn’t let slip a snide remark. He swallowed loudly and shifted the glass to his other hand. His mother’s efforts to play matchmaker would prove fruitless, he’d make sure of it. “Who will we be visiting next? Perhaps the Parkinson’s so you can make sure nothing still remains between Pansy and I?” 

“Draco!” She gasped, her mouth forming an 'o' shape but it was quickly followed by a sheepish smile. “I’m merely nudging you in a certain direction, whether you follow that direction is up to you.” 

He twisted the glass in his palm for a bit, mulling things over. “Fine, I’ll see things out for a bit longer at the Greengrass estate.”

His mum doesn’t need to know it won’t be for Daphne, of course.

**Author's Note:**

> Will dive deeper into some of the inner demons / issues Draco and his family face, as well as flashbacks to the last two years of being hermit like.


End file.
